Seattle’s new professional hockey team is drawing legions of enthusiastic fans. Around a quarter of them are taking public transit, such as the city’s often-maligned monorail, to games.
It’s not just Taylor Swift who can move people to take transit. Among all the doom and gloom public transit stories, there’s a ray of hope, according to an article by David Kroman in The Seattle Times: the Seattle Center Monorail (cue The Simpsons ‘Monorail’ song, for those of us of a certain age).
The elevated train — built for the 1962 World’s Fair and occasionally mocked in popular culture — saw better ridership in the first quarter of this year than it has in any similar period since at least 2009, easily outpacing its pre-pandemic ridership.
The Monorail’s high ridership can be traced to the success of Seattle’s brand new NHL hockey team, the Kraken, whose arena gave the Monorail a new ridership base. “ Through April, the monorail had 533,000 rides, about 150,000 more than the same period in 2022 and over 100,000 more than the same four months in 2019.”
Public transit was a key component of NHL Seattle’s strategy for limiting traffic congestion to the new stadium. “With each Kraken and Storm ticket, fans would receive a free pass on Sound Transit, Metro and/or the monorail, a benefit not available when the Sonics were still in town. This year, the arena added the perk to concerts and other events.”
Data from the team and transit agencies show that roughly 25 percent of fans are using transit to get to Kraken games, with a smaller percentage of people using transit for other events such as concerts.
FULL STORY: Seattle monorail rides the Kraken wave to higher ridership
Seattle Monorail Celebrates 60 Years
"There's nothing on earth like a genuine, bona fide, electrified, six-car monorail."
Monorail Joins the Seattle Transit Network
The city's monorail has operated separately from other systems in the region, but now riders can pay fares using the ORCA cards that work for other transit systems in the region.
Seattle Transit Asked to Clarify Pet Policy
A major dog park near a new light rail stop is prompting calls to update and clarify rules for bringing pets on Seattle-area transit systems.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Congressman Proposes Bill to Rename DC Metro “Trump Train”
The Make Autorail Great Again Act would withhold federal funding to the system until the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), rebrands as the Washington Metropolitan Authority for Greater Access (WMAGA).
The Simple Legislative Tool Transforming Vacant Downtowns
In California, Michigan and Georgia, an easy win is bringing dollars — and delight — back to city centers.
Albuquerque’s Microtransit: A Planner’s Answer to Food Access Gaps
New microtransit vans in Albuquerque aim to close food access gaps by linking low-income areas to grocery stores, cutting travel times by 30 percent and offering planners a scalable model for equity-focused transit.
This City Will Pay You to Meet Your Neighbors
A North Kansas City grant program offers up to $400 for residents to throw neighborhood block parties.
Commentary: Our Silence Will Not Protect Us
Keeping our heads down and our language inoffensive is not the right response to the times we’re in. Solidarity and courage is.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)